The Gardener
by Goomba Fortress
Summary: Delbert, still enamored with his late wife must come to terms with his developing relationship with the Captain, and the decisions that Amelia makes changes things for everyone. Fourth installation in my "Through The Forest" series. Rating for occasional language.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: This is a sequel to my "Through the Forest" series and comes directly after "Solace" but can be read as a stand alone.**

Amelia stood up and brushed the dirt from her knees as she peered at the small planter beside her front door. Sad looking seeds were thrust deep into the moist clay like dirt and left to sprout, or die. Shaking her head at the tiny planter, she returned inside, setting herself to some coffee.

Mail had been piling up at the door for some time now, and she regarded it with a kind of disdain. Amelia had no need for any sympathies, and after the first blue toned get well soon cards, wishes, and sympathies for your loss cards had been opened, she ignored the rest. There was a part of her that wished to find a letter addressed to her in the good doctors sloppy script, containing even just a trifle "Thinking of you" message.

But he would probably just jumble it up, and send it along to her anyway being the good intentioned man that she knew he was.

Amelia couldn't count the times she had picked up a quill and ink; with the intention of writing some of these well wishers. Then, without another thought, she put down the writing utensils with a small sigh.

There wasn't much about living in the tiny spaceport apartment that didn't remind her of Arrow. She had left his room alone, and shut the door to contain the memories. Still, for all the picture frames left turned down, all the personal effects packed away, her efforts showed little reward. Each time she stepped into the tiny flat, his spirit washed over her in waves.

Deciding she needed to get out, she donned a light jacket and grabbed her keys, whisking out of the memory riddled apartment.

Having no direction, or errands in the spaceport, she boarded the transport for Montressor. It would dock at the ashes of the Benbow Inn, and she remembered Jim talking fervently about the night of the fire at his mothers inn.

"It was big, huge even! The fire must have been fifty feet high. By the time it was put out, there was nothing left." Jim's arms flailed above his head, his eyes wild with excitement.

Nothing left indeed. That one small discovery of a map possessed by a dying salamander had left ripples in everyone's life. Sarah had lost her livelihood, Delbert had gotten the adventure of a lifetime, and Jim had straightened up.

Her ship had taken quite the beating. One mast had been destroyed and each of the solar sails had to be replaced. The labor would take months, and being a strict charter Captain, she had to wait for it to be completed, before she could take on another contract. Just as well, she couldn't sail without a first officer anyway.

Which led her to the next problem: Clearly, she couldn't trust the financier of the voyage to hire on a crew, and Amelia had tried to find a set of men she could trust. But they were few and very far in between. Still, the idea of working with the same people time and time again held a spark of appeal to her.

Amelia was shaken out of her thoughts as the transport docked. Her emerald eyes wandered out the window and found the construction site for the new Benbow Inn. Little more than timbers for a basic frame had been erected, and irritation found her as she inspected the foreman and his crew.

Stepping off the transport, her boots made contact with the splintered wood of the loading dock. At first, it was a leisurely stroll past the several tool pocked posts. Then her feet quickened to a lively trot as familiar voices wafted into her ear on waves of miniscule dust particles.

"No, it's like this." Jim laughed, twisting the hammer in his hands expertly. His face fell when the tool hit the dusty earth with a thunk and Amelia chuckled quietly.

"Like this like this like this!" A tiny babbling reached her ear and she looked up into the framework to find Jim aloft with a box of nails and Morph, substituting as a hammer.

"Yeah buddy. Like that." Jim laughed, shedding his jacket and letting it fall to the dusty ground beneath him to join the hammer. Dusting his hands off, he looked up and furrowed his brow at the figure in the distance.

"Captain Amelia?" The teen's eyes found her and she raised her hand in greeting.

"James," Her tone betrayed little of her inner turmoil as she watched Jim climb down from the rafters. "Have you submitted your application to the academy?"

Jim rubbed the back of his neck and averted his eyes. "No, not yet. I haven't told mom yet."

Amelia narrowed her eyes. "James, this is your future. I would be loathe to watch you squander it in your mothers establishment." Did she really just say that? Amelia knew she could be callous, but she hadn't expected that to fly from her lips.

"I'm sorry, who are you?" A human woman in her early thirties approached Amelia, a firm scowl set on her petite features. "What right do you have to be dictating to my son what he should be doing with his life?" Her voice raised in octaves and Amelia watched anger play on her face.

"Mom, no. It's okay. I know her."

"Well, Jim don't be rude. Who is she?" The human woman's brown hair, limp from the heat shook around her head like leaves on a weeping willow.

"Mom, this is Captain Amelia. Doc hired her and her ship for the voyage. Ma'am, I would like you to meet my mom, Sarah Hawkins."

Sarah's lips made a slight 'o' in recognition. "Well then, it's uh, nice to meet you."

Amelia extended a manicured hand and grimaced as Sarah pumped her arm up and down enthusiastically.

"The pleasure is all mine," Amelia said through gritted teeth. Sarah smiled brightly, not catching on to Amelia's discomfort.

"Mom, cut it out" Jim muttered, jabbing his mom in the ribs.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" A blush bloomed on the matriarch's face and she dropped her hand.

"No, it's quite alright." Her right arm settled behind her back and her ears picked up, listening to the foreman and his team.

"-Nah, Hawkins is cool. She will let us get away with anything."

"You sure about that?"

"What is she gonna do? Crawl up here and kick my ass?"

Amelia's emerald eyes narrowed towards the team of slackers. "Missus Hawkins, how much are you paying these brutes?"

"Oh, not enough. They are doing a good job, aren't they?"

Amelia sighed, looking at the brown haired, naive woman. "We should have a chat, you and I."

Sarah smiled at this. "It's been so long since I've had another girl friend to chat with. I mean, Delbert is wonderful, but it's just not the same thing."

Amelia felt her spirits lighten at the mention of Delbert's name and she found a fond smile creasing her features. "I am rather fond of him as well, yes." How strong was this pain medication anyway? She had never known herself to be this freely honest with anyone she hadn't known. Coughing to hide the embarrassed chuckle that nearly escaped her throat, she turned her attention to Jim.

"Mister Hawkins, I do not relish the idea of you keeping secrets like this from your mother."

Jim deadpanned, his face going from a portrait of calmness to hysteria. "You, but I, she!" His word vomit left Sarah's eyebrow arched and her hands found her hips in a motherly fashion.

"James Pleidies Hawkins, what are you hiding from me?"

"It's a long story" Jim muttered the half explanation under his breath, his head hanging.

"Were it not for your son's quick thinking and intuitive nature, things might have turned out very differently." Amelia quirked a smile in Jim's direction. "The interstellar academy could use a man like your son. You should be proud of him." Amelia's quiet alto voice wavered on the last bit and her eyes found approval shining from Sarah's face.

Just when Sarah opened her mouth to shower her son with praise, dust kicked up from the road and the trio turned to the source of the disturbance. A cart pulled by the doctors trusty steed Delilah stopped by the construction site, holding a load of stone.

When the dust settled, Amelia's eyes found him. He held a handkerchief up to his nose with one hand, and in the other he bore a carefully balanced basket covered with a blanket.

"Delbert! We were just starting to think you had gotten lost." Sarah turned to intercept her friend and much against Amelia's better judgment or wishes, a smile came to grace her features.

"Oh, I stopped to pick us up some lunch. I figured you might be hungry."

Sarah hugged him gently. "That's so sweet of you." Staying on the fringes of the gathering, Amelia thought about walking back down to the dock until his brown orbs made contact with her hardened forest green eyes.

For a moment, Amelia wasn't sure what to do, and she could tell that the doctor shared her mixed feelings. They had, for the most part, fallen out of contact after they returned from the burial at the academy. Delbert left for a symposium, and Amelia had sunk into depression headlong.

Looking back, she couldn't recall the last time any man had made her this weak in the knees. The empty space in her mouth quickly filled with cotton as he approached her.

"Jim, lets set out the spread, and leave these two to catch up." Sarah turned to the small picnic style table, an arm around Jim.

Amelia watched Delbert take a few tentative steps towards her before stopping, a strange look on his face. His lips had turned up into a gentle smile, much like the many they had shared together while she had tripped through a fevered delirium.

"I must say," he started, as he came close to her "I never expected to find you here."

Amelia hummed, her long stride outmatching his nervous shuffling. "Is there something wrong with that?" The wry grin on her face made Delbert gulp unknowingly

"No, not at all!" Delbert sputtered nervously, wringing his hands together.

Amelia chuckled, shaking her head derisively. "My my, Doctor you never change."

"I suppose that's a good thing," he offered, a smile slowly coming to his face. "Well then. Would you like to join us, Captain?"

Amelia glanced over towards the ragtag bunch of carpenters, then towards the tiny family unit at the table, and finally at Delbert. She watched his soft brown eyes regard her kindly, as they so often did, and she smiled.

When she thought about it, she hadn't really had any other plans. She did come here, and maybe that's what she intended to do all along. Perhaps in her subconscious mind she knew that Doctor Doppler would be here. And maybe, just maybe, she had been missing him.

"That sounds lovely, Delbert."

The pair turned to the table, and Amelia didn't miss the way Delbert's hand found it's way to the middle of her back in a leading gesture.

"So, what have you been up to?" It was a stupid question, and she fought the urge to roll her eyes and let a sarcastic remark fly off her lips.

"As of last week, I submitted my official report to the contracting agency as well as the interstellar navy."

"Captain," Delbert stopped her with a nervous look on his face. "There is something that we need to make clear."

"Concerning what?" An eyebrow arched itself before she could stop herself.

"Jim and I haven't found the time to tell Sarah about what happened on the trip."

Amelia's eyebrows knitted together, she couldn't believe what she was hearing. It had been at least three weeks, should they not have told her by now?

"I take it she has a very tender disposition?"

"Sarah doesn't take well to strange, or violent occurrences. I have occluded her from the true nature of the inn's fire, but that may only last so long."

Amelia made an 'oh' sound. She didn't agree with this, but it was his decision to make. She couldn't tell him it was wrong.

"I understand, Doctor. I'll not reveal a thing."

* * *

><p>Lunch was followed by hours of casual conversation as Amelia looked over the toiling workers, occasionally offering commentary.<p>

She hadn't realized how late it was until scarlet and amber hues stained the horizon. The weather had tuned chilly as the sun continued to sink below heaps of mining machinery and stone piles.

"Well thats it for the day boys!" Sarah pulled the bell rope, alerting the workers to the days close. Four armed giants, humanoids, and a gnome hopped down from the framework and trudged to the loading dock, slinging their tool belts behind their backs.

Sarah smiled, "They must be so tired, they didn't say a word to me when they left."

Jim brushed past his mother, grabbing his solar surfer and launching himself into the nearest large gap. "I'll see you guys back home!"

Rolling her eyes, she turned to Delbert and Amelia, who seemed to be perfectly at ease in each others company in the growing darkness. Sarah saw the way his eyes lit up when she touched an affectionate hand to his arm. They whispered in low tones, their eyes revealing nothing but their posture spelling everything out.

It was then that Sarah knew what was happening. They had fallen in love. She knew that the Doctor meant well, but a woman like Amelia was certainly out of his league, even at his most charming.

But, it gave her hope. Maybe if someone as bumbling as the Doctor could find someone, perhaps she could too.

Amelia's ears picked up footsteps and she turned her head in time to see the Doctor shrugging his jacket off.

"The nights get cold here, I'm used to them, but I can see you aren't" Delbert's careful hands draped his jacket over her shoulders, his hands lingering not a moment too long.

Amelia breathed in his musky, familiar scent and allowed her mind to wander for a split second. His scent was something wholly unlike anything she had previously encountered. It was a gentle blanket of his own musk mingled with the scent of a well loved book.

The silence was comfortable between the two as he led them towards the carriage. "How have you been?"

She chose not to tell him the whole truth. "I've been wonderful actually. There's been plenty to do." In the lonely weeks following Arrow's funeral, she was a little rusty.

"Come on, I know you can do better than that Amelia. How have you really been doing?" Her bowed head told him everything. Reaching over, his hand caressed the side of her face, willing her to look at him.

"Alright, so maybe it's been a little rough adjusting to living alone." Amelia admitted her shortcomings in quiet tones as the last of the dark purple hues was swept off the horizon by a blanket of stars.

"I know how that can be. No matter where you are, it just seems empty." Amelia had forgotten entirely about his late wife and she nodded understandingly.

"And no matter how many picture frames you turn down, or how many doors are closed it just seems so overpowering sometimes." Amelia clenched her fist by her side, willing the return of her control.

"Perhaps you need a change of scenery darling." Delbert's suggestion, while initially innocent carried connotative undertones.

"I suppose I could move planet side. The Legacy won't be ship shape for quite some time. But then the question becomes where to? There seems to be a shortage of inns in the immediate area." Amelia chuckled, her eyes lighting up.

"I happen to know of a wealthy astronomer with a vast property and no one to share it with." Delbert gave her a thoughtful smile, caressing her shoulder softly. Amelia's expression changed from surprise to understanding in record time.

"Well, you should relay to this wealthy astronomer that he is going to have to try harder than that." A sly smile cracked her lips as her auburn hair blew in the errant wind.

Then, Delbert did something utterly unexpected. Planting one hand on her hips, and one around the back of her head, he swung her into his arms and crushed his lips to hers. After a few heated moments, he released her only when her chest pounded for air. "Honestly woman, must you be so difficult?"

"To be quite frank, it is rather funny." Amelia chuckled, raising a clawed finger up to circle his nose. Amelia fought the urge to laugh as his nose twitched and his eyes followed her finger.

Interrupted by a clearing throat, the two turned to Sarah, who held a bemused look on her face. "Are we done? I would like to get back to the mansion sometime this evening."

Delbert turned to Amelia, whose pleasured face had turned to anger. "Amelia, is something wrong?"

"That blasted transport was the last one till morning." Amelia continued to fume silently, kicking at the dirt around them.

"I seem to recall a discussion involving a rather large house." The Doctor put his thumb and forefinger on his chin in mock thought until Amelia's fiery gaze settled on him.

"Uh, Amelia." Delbert's voice cracked with nervousness. "You are more than welcome to stay with us."

"Oh that will be perfect! I have a huge dinner planned. Dinner..." Sarah trailed off, her eyes going wide with shock. "My Roast! Delbert my roast is going to burn!" Sarah's had jumped into the carriage, anxiously awaiting the pair still on the ground.

"After you, my dear." Delbert helped her into the carriage with an offered hand before mounting his steed, his tongue clicking.

**AN: I am most pleased to announce that this is not over. I have a couple more things planned for this one, so stay tuned. **


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: My sincerest apologies, I did intend to crank out this next chapter much sooner than this. My lovely significant other and I are to be married this September. *squee* And I've been quite busy with the various wedding planning things. **

** And yes, before anyone comments on it, I know I may have over-embellished her obvious British roots. **

**I am planning on a few more chapters to this one before we close out "The Gardener" and move on to the next phase of their relationship. **

**Onward!**

As Delbert drove the carriage up the long cobblestone path Amelia's eyes grew wide at the expansive property.

"My word," she muttered, her eyes taking in the large, manicured lawn surrounding the nearly castle like house with attached observatory.

"It is big, isn't it?" Sarah must have heard her sharp intake of breath at her first glance.

"There aren't words for what this is."

"Oh come now, that's hardly fair. My parent's house is twice this size." Delbert's comment was meant to be easy going, but it amazed the women in the back.

"That can't be an accurate statement, though I certainly understand now where the money came from to finance the voyage."

"Well with all that money squirreled away you certainly have enough to hire a cleaning crew, not that you actually would."

"Pardon me, a cleaning crew?" Amelia's eyebrow arched as the carriage pulled to a stop at the front door.

"Oh, I had my work cut out for me when Jim and I first moved here. But there's plenty more to be done." Sarah blathered on as she fished for the front door key from her bag. At last with the iron key thrust deep past the tumblers, the monolithic door swung open.

Hanging Delbert's jacket on the first available peg, she stepped inside gingerly, marveling at the vaulted ceilings, the floor high stacks of books, and the lack of any open space.

"Oh, my dear Missus Hawkins you weren't joking."

"You'll have to excuse the mess, ever since he got back from that trip and with the exception of coming out to the construction site, he's been holed up in his office doing god knows what." Sarah led Amelia through the dining room and into a large, and fully equipped kitchen with a tiny table nestled into a nook. The smell of roast and simmering vegetables lingered in the air and made for a wonderfully warm and inviting environment.

"I've told him and told him to clean up his mess, but does he do it? Nooo..." Sarah moved a kettle over onto the stove and continued. "And is it so much to ask to clean up your mess? I did not watch my inn burn down just so I could live here and clean up after Delbert."

Changing the subject with an awkward cough she racked her brain. "So, how long have you two known each other?"

"Oh, it's a long story. His late wife, Abagail was an amazing cook. But every friday, they came to the inn to have dinner. They were regulars for a long time, Leland and Delbert got along famously. It was right around the time Abagail passed that Leland left. Delbert didn't know how to cook, so he came around to the Benbow every morning to have breakfast and pick up lunch and dinner. He was around so much, he's practically like family."

"Leland is your husband, I take it?" Sarah nodded, twisting her apron in her hands nervously.

"Yeah. Leland is a spacer, always has been. I didn't expect him to give it up when Jim was born, but part of me wished he had." Sarah continued in a wistful tone as she turned to the stove. "Jim didn't care, he was his dad. He looked up to him so much." Sarah stopped, clearing her throat. "I haven't seen him for a long time, I don't even know if he is still alive."

"Even after you've lost someone, you still feel them." Amelia's words were slow, as if she was discovering her own feelings, rather than trying to offer a sense of comfort for the nostalgic former inn owner. "It's a strange feeling. You know that they are gone, yet they seem to be right at your side, just like nothing happened."

"You sound like you speak from experience."

"Aye. In my business, it helps if you don't get to attached to anyone."

"A lot of good that did you," Sarah scoffed, a smile pulling at the edge of her lips.

"What are you insinuating?" Amelia's eyes narrowed.

"I'm not blind. I've seen the way you two are with each other. Don't even try to deny it." Sarah set the two tea cups down, taking her place in the seat beside Amelia.

"I don't know what you are talking about. Delbert is a wonderful man, beyond that we are just friends."

Sarah pondered this for a minute before a grin broke out on her face. "Something happened with him."

"Not at all. I sustained an injury, and he was a perfect gentleman."

"An injury? What happened?"

Knowing that Sarah wasn't privy to the details, Amelia thought it best to be succinct. "Things were not what they appeared to be."

"Oh dear god." Sarah muttered, her hand covering her eyes.

Amelia watched the slightly older woman run through a range of emotions before finally settling on something she couldn't quite pin point.

"Why am I not surprised something went wrong?" No sooner had these words left her mouth, the back door slammed shut.

"James Pleadies Hawkins, what have you and Delbert been hiding from me?"

"Nothing!" The teen was quick to defend himself as he rushed into the kitchen.

"I will not have things being kept from me! Out with it!" Delbert's footsteps were quiet, and no one in the kitchen had noticed his presence until he cleared his throat.

"Perhaps this is a discussion best had in the lounge?" Delbert's thumb pointed behind him to a well cleaned settee set and coffee table.

Minutes later when everyone had made themselves comfortable, Delbert tugged at his shirt collar, unsure of how to begin.

"I ah, Sarah. I hired a crew. Well, that's not the right place to start." Delbert scratched his head, looking to Jim and Amelia for any kind of offered words or support. "We found that map in the sphere, and someone heard us talking an-"

"Oh for God's sake, Delbert hired a band of pirates who mutinied on us as soon as we closed in on the planet."

Sarah's mouth hung open as Amelia divulged the information, apparently not skimping on any of the details.

"Captain! Yo- you can't just drop it on her like that. Be gentle, please."

"Not bloody likely. You were dithering about, it's high time she knew."

"I don't think being delicate with this was taking my sweet time."

"Oh really? And I suppose you didn't think being late every morning was 'taking your sweet time' either?" Amelia placed emphasis on his previously used turn of phrase, her emerald eyes smoldering into ember colored slits.

"Well maybe I was late a couple of times, but that doesn't mean that I didn't intend to be there on time. Besides, you could do to be a bit lenient." The pair of bickering adults stood nose to nose, neither one showing any signs of backing off.

"Leniency is precisely why Silver and his band of incompetent mongrels mutinied on us, and very nearly got us killed. Or have you forgotten already? You seemed to shrug it off pretty quickly."

"Whoa!" Sarah pulled the two apart, her face contorting partly in shock, and anger. "Mutiny, pirates?"

"It wasn't nearly that bad."

"Oh, codswallop!" Amelia stormed outside, her face contorting in anger.

The wake left behind her sudden departure left ripples. Jim's mouth hung open as he stared after her. "Seriously? You two fight like an old married couple."

"No kidding. Delbert could you clear some of this up for me?"

While Delbert was inside bringing Sarah up to speed, Amelia's long strides took her on top of a hill overlooking a quarry. Taking deep breaths, her arms wrapped around her aching ribs. Trying to make sense of her feelings was something entirely foreign to her. Amelia had always been quite sure of herself, up until she had met Delbert Doppler.

Up until she met Delbert Doppler, her life was pretty routine. She had Arrow, she had the Legacy, and she had a life of excitement and constant movement.

She was a fool to think she would come out of this unchanged.

It was only then, as the pain dulled in her side that she realized she had been a bit brash with Delbert.

Like she had said earlier, he was a perfect gentleman. It was only natural that at some point that would come to clash with her brash personality and dry wit.

'You've gone soft, haven't you?' She spoke in low tones, and to no one but herself. Giving the dirt a push with the toe of her shoe, she pivoted on her heel and returned to the house.

"-And well, that's when everything got out of hand. I was completely terrified, running down the corridor underneath her stateroom. She saved us all."

Amelia snuck in the door to find Delbert seated in a wing backed chair, Sarah and Jim perched on the edges of the red couch.

"To be entirely fair, you saved me too." Amelia's voice was quiet as she walked into the room.

Delbert's eyes shone with happiness, a smile appearing on his face. "It was my pleasure." Delbert's face turned scarlet as he realized the implications of what he had just said.

"The whole thing turned pear shaped rather quickly. I can't believe you were so daft as to hire that crew." Amelia chuckled, taking a seat in the opposing chair.

"A lapse of judgment I suppose." Delbert seemed dismissive of his mistake, waving it off with a flick of his wrist.

"Doctor you can't be so easy to dismiss everything."

"Captain, please. Delbert, she is right."

"I'm not dismissive, am I?"

"Do you remember how you reacted when I ruined the carpet runner on the stairs?" Jim pointed out, laughing a bit.

"Why worry? I had the funds to replace it. Besides, I needed a new one."

"How exactly does one go about ruining carpet runners, James?"

"Solar surfing down the stairs. The tail pipe snagged and ripped the thing to shreds." Jim laughed, his hands demonstrating.

"I see." Amelia was quiet for a minute as she looked around. "This place is all sixes and sevens," Amelia muttered to herself, her eyes roaming from one dust covered bookshelf to the next. "Well then, you all shall be lucky for my company here. I'm going to whip this place back into shape." Amelia stood, taking long strides across the room. "Missus Hawkins can't possibly do all of this alone, and you Doctor Doppler are solely responsible for this estates upkeep. I refuse to let squalor like this continue under my watch. Am I understood?"

"You can't possibly be serious? This is my house, I will dictate it's rules." Delbert stood to face her again, seemingly willing to stand his ground.

"Then you will have noticed the sad state of your roof?" Amelia's slender finger pointed upward into the drafty timbers that comprised his roof.

"That's hardly the point and you know it." Delbert deadpanned, bravely looking her square in the face.

"Then pray tell, Doctor. What precisely is the point?"

Delbert sputtered for a few seconds before smashing his lips against hers in a surprise move that neither party had expected.

After thoroughly kissing her, he released her lips and in a defiant manner declared: "And that my dear Captain Amelia is exactly the point." Leaving Sarah, Jim and Amelia completely confused, Delbert strode into the attached observatory with his telescope, the door slamming shut behind him.


	3. Chapter 3

The room was initially cold when Amelia first set foot into it, but a quick flick of a switch by the fireplace quickly remedied the problem. The low light cast off by the fire illuminated the red paint and gold wainscot motif that ran rampant through the large mansion. Various paintings and tapestries hung on the walls and when her eyes reached the ceiling, an antique brass chandelier hung precariously from a hook and chain.

"This will do nicely, Missus Hawkins." Amelia turned in a semi circle and was now peering at a thick, burgundy floor length curtain.

Seeing the young captain's distracted gaze flit from one thing to the other, the former innkeeper cleared her throat to garner her attention once more.

"There is a laundry chute in the bathroom. Just drop your clothes through before you go to bed tonight and they will be ready for you in the morning." The door swings shut behind Sarah and Amelia finds herself alone.

Uprooting herself from the center of the room, she roams around the tiny space. A wardrobe sits to her right and her green eyes find detailed carvings of a forest frolicking across the rich rosewood. Twisting the brass handle open revealed a long fur coat and a few hats lining the top shelf. The closet is for the most part empty, and she can only speculate as to the owner of the old coat. It is worn in places, but it was well taken care of.

Before her better judgment can step in, she takes the coat off the hanger and inspects the tag. It is from an unknown designer a couple of systems over, but there is an extra tag sewn underneath the manufactures mark. The name 'Abagail Doppler' is sewn neatly in white thread on a black piece of fabric and Amelia puts the coat back into the closet, shutting the door with a sigh.

This had been her room.

Everything suddenly holds a different meaning for her.

The painting above the mantle is of a woman in an evening gown, and Amelia wonders if it's Abigail. Looking around, her gaze finds time worn pieces and she wonders to herself how many times Abagail's gaze had settled on it with a fond sigh.

A clock ticks in the corner. How many times did Abagail's hand reach into it to manually wind it after it had stopped?

She hardly has time to notice the décor of the bathroom as she kneels over the toilet, her vagus nerve pulsing in her chest. Seconds pass, and nothing happens.

She sits back after a minute or so, wiping the clammy skin on her arms with a nearby hand towel. Amelia is shivering, and she doesn't know if it's from the low temperature inside the previously uninhabited bathroom, or if it's because her sense has finally left her.

She stands on shaking legs and turns the tap on, splashing her face with the cold flowing water and drying off with the towel she had placed on the side of the basin.

Amelia convinces herself that it's just a room. It's only a bed and a few well placed knick nacks. And Abagail Doppler was no longer it's occupant.

She can no longer comfort herself with the idea that she never knew of her existence. But when she thinks of her widowed husband, her heart lightens. Amelia smiles at the thought of their very first meeting in the smoke choked tavern.

He had found her seated in a wing backed chair in the corner of a busy tavern, swirling brandy in a glass and waxing poetic to the empty seat next to her. Amelia couldn't quite remember what was said, but there was an exchange of information and she left the tavern that evening with a manila folder clutched in her claws.

They met again at the spaceport in less than a month, the gangly doctor ensconced in a metal suit, and she in her military jacket and boots.

Night and day difference they were, but Amelia couldn't deny that even in those early days of their relationship that she didn't feel anything for him. It was a keen twisting in her stomach that was wholly unlike anything she had experienced in the past. At first, Amelia thought it might have been jitters, due to their unlikely destination. But as the journey progressed, and she began to see more and more of Delbert, she could no longer attribute that strange crumpling feeling in her core to anything but him.

The bathroom was decorated simply in alternating black and white tiles and brass fixtures. Delbert certainly did like brass, she thought to herself. An old clawfoot bathtub sat in the middle of the bathroom with a shower curtain hanging above it, adorned with ducks. Fuzzy, newborn ducks marched in diagonal lines on a cloudy, blue sky. Her lips turned upwards at the ducks and she let out a soft chuckle.

Finally, her eyes found a small door next to the baseboard and upon opening it up, discovered an empty hole leading down the duct work of the house. _This must be the laundry chute, _Amelia thought to herself as she began to empty her pockets.

Striding back into the bedroom she laid the couple of pound notes and her pocket watch onto the bedside table and stripped down to her skivvies, balling up her clothes as she went back to the laundry chute.

Gazing into the growing flames, she stood near nude on the carpet and she let her hand happen across the surface of her time worn locket. A barren tree decorated the front of the well worried locket and she flicked it open carefully in her palm.

Pressing the button on the side, the holographic image of her mother popped in front of her eyes. Stark feline features accompanied alabaster skin and a delicate smile. When she closed her eyes, she could remember the many nights spent under the comfort of her blanket, and her mothers arms.

A fond smile reached her features and she clicked the hologram off silently.

What would her mother think of her now, Amelia wondered as she turned down the covers. Would she be proud of the woman Amelia turned out to be? Twenty something and up for hire as a chartered ship after years adrift in the eastern etherium.

Clicking the lights off, she let her mind drift off, but sleep would not come.

Delbert rose early the next morning, which was entirely unlike his usual schedule. Scrubbing a paw over his face, he reached for his spectacles and placed them promptly on his nose, clicking his tongue against the roof of his mouth.

The dry cotton mouth that accompanied his nocturnal snoring was enough to rouse him into the bathroom to brush his teeth.

It wasn't until he spit out the mouth rinse that he was awake enough to glimpse himself in the mirror. Staring at the untamed hair on the back of his head, he reached for the tie he used, his hand instead navigated over to the comb that sat unregarded on the side of the sink.

Delbert remembered about Amelia. She would certainly be up and around by now with those insane hours he knew she kept. He could see her judgmental gaze now as he tamed his appearance.

After performing an efficient toilette, he found himself satisfied with his reflection in the mirror. She would certainly find something to snip at him for though. That wit of hers would cut through all the self confidence he had built up for himself that morning.

Delbert would probably blush and stammer out something lame like "I didn't notice," if he could talk at all around her. If there was any one thing he had noticed about Amelia, apart from her amazing er- intellect it would be the way his blood pressure would skyrocket and his throat would close up whenever he thought about her.

It was entirely different from the way Abby made him feel. When he thought of his late wife, the empty pangs that accompanied her had long subsided, and were replaced by a solemn hum, deep within his chest. There was a time when his thoughts still revolved around her, replaying her final moments in his head and wondering why he didn't see the signs

She did look a little sick, and he knew he should have pressed the issue of going to the hospital. Abby's easy going attitude quickly wiped away any doubt he had about her health, and foolishly he believed her.

Abagail Doppler didn't die in her sleep, the way he wished it would have happened. The novels she read contained heartbreaking scenes of loved ones dying ensconced in the arms of their lovers, drifting off on waves of sleep, and the whisper of death.

Abagail Doppler died suddenly, a cry of pain cracking from her throat.

He tripped headlong over piles of books and pulled her head into his lap, horror striking him as he noticed the blood dripping from her left ear.

The novel she dropped had landed on it's spine, instantly cracking down the middle.

Delbert likened the book months later to the way his heart had cracked clean through. He had picked up the silly novel months after her death, convinced he would be able to pack it away with the remainder of her things. As soon as he begun to leaf through it's contents, his eyes found several dog eared pages in the well worn novel, and he let himself grieve her again.

Delbert doesn't think about her as much any more, not since he met Amelia.

With that final thought, he pushes the pin through his cravat and exits his room.


	4. Chapter 4

**Hello, my lovely readers. This chapter comes to you, from me with loads of love. Thank you for all of your kind words and encouragement. They have pulled me out of the slump I found myself in. **

**Seriously, there aren't words for how utterly awesome you guys are. I love reading your reviews, they mean a great deal to me. **

**There will be a few more chapters to this one before we close it out and move to the next phase of their relationship. **

**Now, with all that out of the way, I give you the next chapter of 'The Gardener' **

Amelia walked down the stairs the next morning, straightening the light jacket she had donned over her blouse. Early morning light came creeping in through the cracks in the curtains and the smell of freshly roasted coffee beans wafted up through the spacious mansion.

Amelia loved mornings best. They offered a seldom acquired solitude that she looked forward to. Coming to the landing, her steps slowed as she straightened the cuffs on her sleeves, pulling the corners taut.

She had started the morning out with a warm shower to ease her aching body and frayed mind. It felt good to shower somewhere she had not before. It was an intriguing feeling that she reflected on as she took a hand towel through her fiery locks.

A tooth brush had been provided, as well as other necessary toiletries and she had taken advantage of their presence. Minutes later; sparkling, pointy fangs glimmered in the quickly clearing mirror.

Was she really doing this? Was Amelia really considering moving in with the Doctor and his tiny, slightly dysfunctional circle of close friends?

Amelia wasn't one for rash decision making. So why did it feel so _right_ to move in with Delbert?

Since when did she call him Delbert anyway?

A serious expression overtook her until then gentle features and she swiped a hand through her nearly dry auburn hair.

"Footsteps, I hear footsteps!" A crazed, slightly mechanical voice grated on her ears and she leveled them to her skull, looking around for the mechanical fiend that had interrupted her until then perfect morning.

"I wonder who that could be! It's not the 'doc, Jimmy isn't usually up this early, I would know about it..." The robot continued to prattle on as Amelia rounded the corner into the kitchen.

"Oh! Captain Amelia! I didn't know you were here!" B.E.N chattered happily as he took out a cup and saucer. "How do you like your coffee?"

Amelia peered at the unusual metal man and replied with a stern "Black, please." In what seemed like a second, a hot cup of coffee was pressed into her hands and she let the scent envelop her senses.

"The Doc used to grow his own coffee here. I think something might have happened to the greenhouse though." B.E.N looked out towards the sliding door just off the kitchen. It opened up into a dilapidated greenhouse that had certainly seen the end of it's golden age.

Aggressive vining plants had knocked out some of the window panes and grew unchecked over moss covered tables and dirty glass panes.

Amelia hummed, sipping her coffee. "Fascinating." Stepping towards the door, she edged it open and slipped into the humid greenhouse.

Bushes and shrubs had grown into tiny trees without a tender hand and a pair of shears to guide them, and Amelia could strike many parallels between her life and this sad looking greenhouse. Her feet found piles of soft dirt and moss scattered around the once cement floor and she was careful to avoid shards of broken clay pots.

The more she ventured into the aged lost venture, the more her eye found. Tender flowers had been left in the care of mother nature, and many of the passive ones were very near extinction. Purple blooms hung on threadbare green stalks, their sallow leaves yellow from the lack of rainwater on the mining planet.

"You've found Abby's greenhouse I see." Delbert's sudden intrusion made her nearly drop her coffee in surprise and she turned on her heel to face him.

_Abby's greenhouse. _It made sense. She died, and the greenhouse and it's care went with her.

"I had a full staff working on the lawn and the gardens. But the greenhouse was her idea. She spent ages out here misting the plants or harvesting from them." Delbert pointed to the corner of the area where a nearly tree like bush had dominated a good portion of the space. Red, shriveled berries clung to dying twigs, swaying in the light morning breeze.

"I suppose you can figure out the rest."

Amelia turned her green eyes towards the Doctor's gentle brown orbs and smiled, picking her way back through the upturned clay pots and mounds of dirt.

"There is plenty of work to be done out here." Amelia stood next to him, her eyes sweeping over the dying landscape of the Doppler mansion grounds. The night had shrouded fields of dying grass and barren trees and empty patches where flower beds once flourished. "That is, if you have no objection."

Delbert seemed to think about it for a minute before nodding in contemplation. Delbert wondered if he could handle it. Abagail had passed so long ago, he could no longer remember what her voice sounded like. And when he thought about love, it was no longer her face that loomed in his minds eye. Amelia's face appeared, radiant as the morning sun, and it made his heart swell.

"I suppose it is about time to get this mansion back into shape."

Amelia grinned "Splendid."

They walked back into the mansion in companionable silence and sat together in the sitting room.

Neither of them spoke for quite some time and the silence expanded to uncomfortable bounds.

Amelia was the one to break the silence with a clearing of her throat. "Doctor, are we really doing this?"

Doppler wrinkled his nose and looked in her direction. He didn't find the strong, intelligent ship captain sitting beside him. He found a woman, grasping a cup of nearly gone coffee and pondering her next move.

"I believe so. Unless you don't want to."

Amelia chuckled "You misunderstand me. Of course I want to." She set her cup down on the table and turned to him, a strange look on her face that Delbert had only seen a handful of times. "You make me feel different about myself, Doctor."

"Different?" Delbert had never been told this by anyone, but he knew deep in his heart the feeling she was talking about.

"Truly Doctor, I have never felt this way towards anyone."

This couldn't be happening. Delbert felt his mouth go dry and his hands felt clammy and heavy in his lap. He was suddenly hyper aware of everything around him.

With Abby, he had married his best friend. They knew the ins and outs of each other better than anyone else. With her, he had experienced companionship, and a deep friendship that had bound them together truly until death parted them.

But she never made him feel the way Amelia makes him feel.

Around Amelia, Delbert is lucky if he can remember his first name, or feel his feet under him. It's as if his whole world revolves around her now. He can't help it. He wonders how she does it, if she is even acutely aware of the effect she has on him.

Wait, she was talking wasn't she?

"Doctor, you're staring." Amelia's pointed words pulled him out of his mind and he shook his head, blinking a few times.

"I uh. I hadn't realized I was staring."

A gentle smile lit up Amelia's scarlet lips and her emerald eyes sparkled with mirth. "Noticing things isn't exactly your strong suit, is it?"

"I notice plenty of things." It was more of a question than a statement. Delbert adjusted his glasses for emphasis and Amelia chuckled in his direction, standing up.

"Of course, Doctor. I would never insinuate otherwise." Amelia stretched carefully, grimacing when a pang from her aching ribs made itself known.

Delbert reached a hand out but retracted it slowly when when she didn't waver on her feet. "Are you alright?"

"Fine," Amelia said through gritted teeth, smoothing her jacket down. "I had best be on my way home, Doctor." She turned her head towards the door. "I suppose I have a fair amount of packing ahead of me."

Delbert smiled and stood up. "I'll go hitch Delilah then."

Delbert was halfway to the door when a quiet, "Doctor" made him turn around.

"Yes dear?" Delbert couldn't recall a time when he had ever called her 'dear' but she hadn't clawed his eyes out, so he supposed she was okay with it.

"Thank you." A gracious smile parted her lips as she stood motionless on the deep purple rug in the middle of the sitting room.

She doesn't need to elaborate, he understands.

For now, the arrangement they have come to will suffice. Amelia would pack up her apartment, but retain her property there. It would be useful again someday, she thinks.

Amelia has next to no idea what she will do with Arrow's things. She supposes she will have it sent to his family a few systems over. It would not do to have his things sitting around in storage. She has no need of them, and the emotional attachment she has to him will fade eventually.

In the mean time, the bond she is developing with the good Doctor is growing past what she ever thought it would. They had gotten close in the past four months, but they had only just met. Before the voyage, she wouldn't have given the floppy eared astronomer a second thought.

But something had happened to change her view of him. The death of Chester Arrow had catalyzed her relationship with Delbert Doppler. When she looks back on it, no one's death had impacted her life in such a way.

Amelia Smollet is in no place to make assumptions, but in another universe where Chester Arrow's life had not been tragically cut short, would the journey have ended the same way?

Shaking her head to rid it of these odd thoughts, she steps out into the Montressor sunshine and turns her head into the breeze. It feels good, among other things. She owes it to herself to chase after the things that make her feel like this. Amelia Smollet owes it to herself to be happy, she owes it to _him. _

With that final thought, she steps into the carriage and sits beside the man that she has fallen irrevocably in love with.

"Something on your mind?" Delbert's sudden speech pulls her out from her own head.

"Not a thing, dear."

Sitting beside the Doctor stirs up an interesting feeling inside her. Something that she knows will be the catalyst in her own life.

Amelia acknowledges the feeling. And it is good.


	5. Chapter 5

Amelia isn't one to place all of her proverbial eggs into one basket; so when it comes to the question of what to pack and what to leave behind, she makes her decisions carefully. The mansion certainly has enough of everything to keep her in the comfort she is accustomed to. She has no need of the well worn couch and the table set that is sitting in her living room, and she can think of no reason to get rid of them either.

The answer is simple. She decides to keep her small residency on the arm of the spaceport. It would come in handy soon, she thinks.

The real problem is what to do with the corner room and the so long closed door. Her former first mate would be pleased to know that she is making such strides in her life to make herself happy. But the decisions that she has to make following his death do not make the change easier.

Amelia steels herself before turning the nickel brushed knob leading into the now spare bedroom. It hurts to think of him in such stark absolutes, but how could anyone survive a black hole? Sure, they had gone through their fair share of close scrapes, but this was more than close.

She is immediately reminded of that small, wayward planetoid she had found herself on during the Proycon wars. The ship that she had been serving on as first mate had been blasted out of the sky. When Amelia came to, her lower half was drifting in and out of the sea with the tide. A boot was missing and her coat had been burned from the blast. Neither of these things mattered though.

The myth is that she waited three days, collecting stray parts that rained down on the surface of the beach head. After she had collected enough for a small solar powered skiff, Amelia rode it off the planetoid, and into the shipping lanes between two adjacent systems. Days passed until a ship passed by her. She had been weak, and most certainly near death. They picked up the small skiff she had scraped together and carried her into the ships on board infirmary. Amelia then took command of the vessel and sailed it back into the line of conflict, saving the day and more than likely dealing a blow large enough to end the war.

The reality wasn't as exciting as the fiction that she heard in taverns the galaxy over. After her ship had been blasted out of the sky, she found herself washed up on a beach head. Her lower half was drifting in and out with the tide, one bare foot peaking out of the foam. Amelia could recall the hopelessness that gripped at her. No one would come looking for her down here. After scavenging for supplies and building a tiny, leaning shelter she holed up for what would most likely be a long time.

After three days, a tiny ship moored just off the planet heralded an escape for her. Four humans piloting a life boat landed on the beach head, shovels in hand. She watched as they dug into the sand until the reached a driftwood door and disappeared into the hole. The truth about her daring escape, was that it wasn't really a daring escape. She bartered for passage off the tiny planet with a gang of rum runners, who were then coerced into sailing into an active battlefield to return her to her ship.

Amelia didn't want to think about the things she had to do to get back to her ship. She just focused on the moment she set foot on the well worn deck of the R.L.S Legacy for the first time. The stern captain at the time regarded her with a kind of disdain that didn't usually come along with the recognition of her rank in the navy. After explaining who she was and where she had been, she was instructed to stay with the vessel for the remainder of her tour.

She had only seen battle one other time. Two Proycon ships had flanked the Legacy, their enemy troops jumping onto the decks and engaging in fierce hand to hand combat. Stray laser shots rang out around her as she dodged enemy fire. Amelia recalled the way the captain's face contorted in shock and pain as his large frame hit the deck, blood spilling over it's timbers. Outnumbered and outgunned, Amelia fought hard against the invaders. When at last her pistol had ran clean of it's charges and her gun had jammed, she resorted to fist fighting. Her acrobatics came in handy as she led them on a merry chase from the masts of each ship, some falling to their death.

The upper hand was gained at last, and the very last of the enemy troops were snuffed out. Casualties were numerous, and it wasn't until her ears stopped ringing and the deck had been cleared of the gore that she realized she was now the ranking officer on board. Wiping the blood from her cheek, she strode to the bridge, punching in the coordinates for the nearest system with a navy outpost. The crew recognizes her as their leader now out of respect. The many wounded were taken below deck, leaving a skeleton crew operating the masts and repairing the guns. The journey back home took weeks, but it didn't seem as long as the battle they left behind.

Everyone on board had seen enough combat and none were keen on sailing again for a while. She had taken the post as acting captain some time ago, and the navy felt like this was the proper action to take. When they moored at Crestentia, her promotion had been officially recognized in the company of her close friends and family. Among the throng of party goers, one stony face stood out and she regarded it with a relieved smile.

He congratulated her, and over a pint at a nearby tavern they basked in each others well missed company.

Those days had long since passed, and now with the passing of her long time friend she can no longer justify keeping his things.

She remembers that she had boxes delivered to pack away his sparse belongings, but had not gone any further than that. The rational side of her screams for control, while the newly emerged sentimentalist in her wants to leave everything just as it is.

After a massive internal battle, Amelia begins the slow, painful process. Clothes are folded and packed away, cushioning his plaques and certificates from school. There are no trinkets or unnecessary objects cluttering the dresser or the night stand. His living space is surprisingly spartan, compared with the rest of the small apartment. Not so surprisingly, she thinks as she reaches the end of his wardrobe after a few minutes. He lived sparsely, because he didn't need material things to make a home. She supposed she could learn a thing or two from him.

Sentimentalism shouldn't be so comfortable to her. It only muddles things further.

After an afternoon of packing, she labels the crates for shipping and places them in the living room. A courier would come by for the packages later.

Her ribs pang, and she reaches for the pills in her pocket, dry swallowing a few. Looking around at her progress, she realizes that she hasn't even begun to pack her items away. Walking into her own bedroom, she pulls a large bag from the floor of her closet. Her own wardrobe isn't as skimpy as Chester's. It takes a bit to pack all of her civilian clothes, but after an hour of shifting and refolding, she finally fits it all inside the black burlap bag and she zips it shut. Laying it on her bed, she goes back to her closet. The only things left are the four command uniforms that hang in pristine condition inside plastic bags. Two pairs of boots are all that is left on the bottom of the closet and she snatches them up, along with the uniforms and lays them all beside the bag.

A ringing brings her out of whatever thoughts she was entertaining and she waltzes into the kitchen and hits the accept button.

A face that she never expected to see again pops up on the screen and her mouth hangs open in shock.

"Kitty, I know you may not want to see me."

"You're damn right I don't want to see you. How did you get this number?" She alternates between shock and rage, and finally settles on anger.

The man on the screen looks flustered, and repentant. "I have a guy, it's not important. I wanted to call you, to see how you were."

"I'm doing just fine without you. Please don't call again." Her hand hovers over the disconnect button and she hesitates, watching the reaction of her estranged father go from decidedly repentant to sorrowful in a second.

"Please, don't hang up. I know I was a shitty dad. I want to make up for that now."

"I was a child, and I watched my mother die in front of me. By your hand, none the less. I don't wish to have anything to do with you." She disconnects before she can think otherwise and reaches for the bottle of whiskey inside the cabinets. The amber liquid travels down her throat in a path of soothing fire and it feels good.

The door bell rings, and she is vaguely aware of the courier on her front porch. Business is conducted and he hauls the boxes away, putting them in the back of a truck. He leaves with a wave and a 'Have a nice evening, ma'am!' and she waves back as social manner dictates.

Returning to the call device, she punches in Delberts number and waits patiently as it rings. Once, twice, he picks it up on the third ring, a pleasant smile on his face.

"Doctor," She greets him with a smile.

"Ah, Captain. I wasn't expecting your call." He adjusts his glasses and peers at the screen, squinting his eyes slightly.

"I've finished the bulk of the packing. When should we schedule this move of sorts?"

"Ah, that is the question isn't it?"

Amelia smiles. "I was thinking the sooner the better? I was going to keep my flat here and just move my personal things over."

Delbert nods. "That seems best. Would you be ready completely in the morning? I can come in a cab."

Amelia smiles. "Of course. I shall expect you tomorrow morning."

Their conversation drags on into the mundane and after what seemed like only a moment, Delbert finds himself saying goodnight and hitting the disconnect button. Tomorrow will be the day that she moves in.

Ostensibly, she would take the room she slept in a few nights ago. They hadn't discussed arrangements that far, but Delbert isn't lacking for any space in his mansion.

Standing up, he stretches his legs and ambles out of his observatory. Night has fallen and the stars are at their brightest, but Delbert finds himself distracted by his call with Amelia. It's only been a few days since he last saw her in person, but it feels like longer to him.

It's illogical, and he knows it. But he has always been this way, and her presence in his life has only made that worse.

He shuts the door behind him and wanders aimlessly through the sitting room and kitchen until he comes across the broken greenhouse. He doesn't need lights out here to see. Some bio-luminescent plants in the corner are providing enough light for him to see by.

Not enough, however to show the garden hose that tripped him. Getting to his feet, he dusts his pants off and looks around to make sure he was still alone. Sighing in relief, he walks down the aisles of broken terra cotta pots and spray bottles.

The years that have gone by since Abagail's death are the most noticeable here. It's only been a few, three to be exact. The plants grew wildly inside the humid box, but withered after a few weeks without water. A few survived. A cactus in the corner looked good still, despite the lack of watering.

It's been three years, and Delbert can still sense her perfume clinging to the stool in the corner. It doesn't invoke the same sadness that it used to. He doesn't feel like his world has ended.

Delbert knows that he needs to make room in his heart for Amelia. It's time. Abagail would want him to be happy. And, he has. He knows that he has fallen in love with her. He knew it on that damnable planet. When they were sitting in that darkened cave, waiting for Jim to come back, he knew that his life had changed.

When he had first signed on for the voyage, it had been a ploy. He hadn't left his house, save to go to the inn, in months. He hadn't given any speeches, or lectures at the local university in some time. Delbert was in most ways, a hermit. He couldn't bring himself to face the world without her. He knew it was dramatic, and that he should have been well over it, but he wasn't.

Then, he went on a trip with Jim. Delbert didn't expect to fall for a woman that was so brass tacks and so utterly unlike Abagail. But he had.

Going back inside, he retreats into his study again and makes the necessary arrangements for the greenhouse to get re glassed and framed. It wouldn't do to put it off, he knew she would want to start on it as soon as possible.

But, first things first. She needed to be here. He calls the cab company and explains that he needs a car for the whole day. The fees will be steep, but his pockets are deep. She will want to pay for the cab, but he won't have any of that. He knows who makes more, despite her rank and her currently large pension pay from the navy.

The phone disconnects and he is left in echoing silence in his study. His hand absentmindedly reaches for his record collection, thumbing through the various albums before finding an old jazz record. This one had been his favorite growing up. He remembered evenings around the fire, listening to the music while his parents reminisced over the old days on the couch behind him. Every good memory from his childhood is rooted in the grooves on the disc in his hands. Flipping the black disc onto the table, he puts the needle down and lets the music flow through the blue painted horn.


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: Another chapter! We tied the knot last month, and it feels great! I'm so happy to have the time to write again, and I sincerely hope I have a few readers left. This story is part of a series, if anyone is interested. Acquaintanceship Through the Forest, and Solace are all completed (Through the Forest might be taken down for editing soon though!) and up for your reading pleasure. **

**As always, enjoy! (And review, if you feel like it.)**

Delbert isn't usually one to indulge in nightcaps, but he thinks tonight he could make an exception. The cactus whiskey would help him sleep tonight and hopefully bypass the jitters he would more than likely experience that night. Besides, he hasn't had a drop in ages. It would do him good, he thinks.

The bottle has a thick patina of dust on it, a byproduct of sitting on the shelf for a while. The pads of his fingers interrupts the mosaic of dust and he slowly uncorks the bottle. Instantly he can tell that the alcohol has matured further since he had last partook. The flavors, the smells were different.

It smelled of anticipation, and late night coalescing into early mornings. The symphony of flavor crashed like an amber tidal wave into the clear tumbler that he had placed on his desk and little bubbles lingered on the surface. The whiskey is capped and Delbert sits down at his desk, peering into the glass that he had poured for himself before remembering it's exact purpose.

Delbert needed sleep. It had been far too long since he had been able to snag an entire night uninterrupted. The mansion had started settling in the evening after everyone had gone to bed. Strange noises, the howling of the wind, and even sometimes the sound of his own breathing would keep him awake.

The lead crystal tumbler feels etherial in his hands. Smooth glass is unmarred by chips or cracks, and the liquid inside has begun to settle on the bottom ridges of the glass. The whiskey leaves a trail of fire down his throat and he sets the glass down, sitting back in his chair as the alcohol begins to take effect.

Delbert isn't known far and wide for his ability to make quick decisions. So how did this come about seemingly overnight? It had been the culmination of many months of late evenings on the opposite side of her desk, and many more mornings waking up and not having to worry about being late anywhere. It had taken some time to re adjust to civilian life. He would like to think he was getting the hang of things when he had finally disembarked from the Legacy on his way home. He had finally adjusted to early nights, and much earlier mornings and Amelia was starting to look much less upset when he came in the door, juggling star charts and books.

Realizing that his brain has now wandered far off the original point of thought, he backtracks.

Extenuating circumstances had forced them together, and Delbert had screwed it up horribly.

_Amidst a throng of people bustling to the correct dock laden with packages, and cases they had said their goodbyes. Amelia had been taken in the arms of a pair of paramedics who were fighting to get her into an ambulatory vehicle and Delbert needed to catch up with Jim. _

"_Well now, it seems our adventure together has come to an end." Delbert walks down the gangplank with Amelia beside him. The feline's eyes are roaming around a full port and he watches them narrow in irritation when it spies flashing lights and medical personnel. _

"_It would seem so, Doctor. There is plenty of paperwork to be done, I expect to have copies sent to you by the end of the week." _

"_Ah, yes of course" Delbert pushes his glasses up on his nose and when he refocuses his eyes he finds a throng of cameras and reporters have seemingly come from nowhere and are now gagging the point of entry into the port. _

"_Captain Amelia, care to share where you went this time?"_

"_Captain, care to comment on the lack of a crew?" _

"_Is it true you went after treasure?" _

"_Doctor Doppler, are you looking to publish another paper soon?" _

_Camera flashes and shouted questions bombard them and Delbert throws an arm around her middle and poses for a photo before ushering her past the press and beyond the security officers now flanking the area. _

"_Why the hell would you ingratiate them like that?" The reprimand comes through gritted teeth and he knows she is agitated by all the flashing lights and microphones in her face._

"_Better to let them have one good picture, rather than a bunch of bad ones. Learned that one the hard way." _

"_Captain Amelia," The paramedics had found them and placed a hand on her shoulder, pulling her towards the ambulatory vehicle parked a few feet away. "Captain, we need to get you into surgery." _

"_Nonsense, I have orders to carry out." Amelia wrenched her arm away from the EMT and turned back to the Doctor. "If you will excuse me, I have a mountain of paperwork to sift through, and it won't get done by itself." _

"_Ma'am, your first mate really should be taking care of that. We need to take care of you." The paramedics were insistent in their duty and although Amelia had respect for that, she certainly didn't have time to go under the knife._

"_Damnit, my first mate is dead. Shove off!" Even in her weakened state, the glares that she sent the paramedics were icy enough to keep them at bay a little longer. _

"_Captain, go. I will take care of things here. You need to go with them." He touches her hand briefly and smiles. "You can trust me." _

_The paramedics behind her cleared their throats and ushered her towards the ambulance. _

_He watched it drive away briefly before turning to the Legacy again. The pirates were being de-boarded , each of them cuffed and in a line guarded closely by no fewer than four officers. _

"_Where is the Captain and her first mate?" A few officers were on the deck speaking with Jim and he pointed his finger at the doctor who was now making his way back up the gangplank. _

"_I'm the financier, as well as the navigator. How can I help you?" _

"_Doctor Doppler, where is the Captain? Our orders dictate that we speak with her." _

"_As she is currently incapacitated, you will have to conduct your business with me." _

"_Incapacitated?" _

"_You just escorted no less than six pirates off this ship, what do you think incapacitated means?" His attitude came on suddenly, and completely unexpectedly. He supposes it is a byproduct of spending so much time with her, but it cannot be helped. He hasn't eaten or slept and his patience had reached it's end._

"_Hey buddy. If you want to get rough, we are going to have to have this conversation somewhere else." _

_Delbert takes a moment, breathing deeply before starting again. "The crew mutinied. The Captain was injured during our escape and is being taken to the hospital." _

_The two officers on the deck then hand the canid a large sheaf of papers with a sealed envelope addressed to the Captain. "Seeing as that makes you the ranking officer, sign this top sheet saying we gave you the necessary forms. It will then be up to you to ensure they are completed either by yourself, or by the Captain." With that, they stride off the deck and disappear into the churning throng of people. _

_Looking at the stack in his hands, he huffs slightly at having to be the messenger boy. He has a doctorate, why is he doing the running around? _

_He supposes he should thank them, this now gives him the excuse to visit her at the hospital. _

_Amelia woke up in a haze that evening. A pattering came through a long tunnel, accompanied by various beeping machines and a lingering stench of antiseptic. Her tongue sticks to the top of her mouth when she opens it to speak, and the taste is an odd after effect from the pain killers._

"_Ah, Captain Smollet, you're awake. Good. We have a few questions for you." A penlight is flashed into her eyes and she tries to lift her hand to swat the offending object away. For her efforts, she is rewarded with a twitch of her wrist and nothing more. _

"_Now, Captain Smollet, we had to give you a sedative. Do you remember what happened?" _

_Amelia vaguely remembers verbally abusing the admitting physician and possibly clawing a few nurses; but it comes to her through a thick fog. _

_The doctor answers her with a knowing smile. "It will be difficult for you to remember now. But when the sedative wears off fully, you will regain your memory." _

_Amelia nods and the doctor continues. _

"_You broke four ribs, and fractured your collar bone in your latest stunt. Is it at least a good story?" The doctor peers over his clip board briefly and a memory from a past injury flickers across her mind. _

_Amelia chuckles in amusement. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."_

"_Well then, you have a visitor, and he seems quite anxious to see you. Would you like me to send him __in?" _

_Amelia licks her lips. There is only one him now, and she knows who exactly is sitting in the waiting room. "Yes. Today, if possible." The last bit is said with her usual icy tone and she can tell the doctor doesn't know what to make of it._

_The doctor sweeps out of the room, his white coat billowing behind him. The door hangs on it's fringes, not shutting completely. More likely the product of a lazy construction team, she muses. Looking around the room, spartan furnishings greet her bleary eye and it isn't until she looks away from the ugly abstract art across from her that she realizes someone has entered the room. _

"_Captain," Delbert clears his throat to gain her attention before sitting in the chair beside her bed. A leather satchel is dropped by his feet and she picks up on his nervousness._

"_Doctor, is there something you need?" _

"_Yes, ahh. The port authority handed some documents off to me to give to you. It's just the passenger manifest sheet and a few insurance claims forms. I really don't know what to do with them to be honest. This is the first time I've done anything like this." Delbert pulls out the envelope addressed to her and places it on her bedside table. "They also handed me that. It's addressed to you, so I didn't open it." _

_Amelia chuckles and sits up slowly in bed. "To be honest, I don't have a single clue about those either. Arrow took care of all of them." Amelia grabs the envelope and breaks the wax seal with a manicured claw, unsheathing the documents inside. _

_Delbert watches her eyes flick over the print on the bohemian stationary before she sets it aside, her good hand reaching up to massage the bridge of her nose. _

"_Blasted troglodytes. I've half the mind to march up there myself and give them the dressing down they deserve." _

"_Not good news?" Delbert furrows his brows and watches for a reaction from her. _

"_Not hardly. Those idiots at the judiciary office are trying to pull me in for jury duty." Amelia folds the paper back into the envelope and lays it on the table beside her. _

"_They knew you were off planet, why would your name even come up in the system?" _

_Amelia growls, gritting her teeth. "I haven't the faintest idea, Doctor." _

_The white coat clad doctor pokes his head in the door, motioning to his watch. "Couple more minutes, then I'm gonna need to kick you out." _

_Delbert smiles and stands up, patting Amelia's hand. "He's right, you need to sleep." _

"_Look who's talking. When was the last time you slept?" Amelia's snarking tone didn't fly over his head and he rubs the back of his head. _

"_I know, I know. I'll be by tomorrow afternoon, and maybe if you are feeling up to it we can muddle our way through all this paperwork." Delbert bent down to pick up his bag and when he straightened up, Amelia was fast asleep, slouching in her upright position. Very carefully leaning her back into her pillows, he prayed she didn't wake up and tear him a new one. _

_Against his better judgment, he leaned down and pressed a small kiss on her temple. She wouldn't feel it, and he would never have to tell her that he had done it. _

_Delbert had kept his word and returned the next day, and the day after that. But after the funeral, things for the doctor had picked up a great deal. It happened on a warm afternoon that a call came in for him to lecture at the astronomy hall. Delbert accepted in a heartbeat, and just like that his life was back to the way it was before. His students loved having him back, and the faculty was curious about what had happened to him to make him disappear like he had. _

_He wonders after a few weeks if he should send a letter off to the Captain, but he knows that she would probably be busy and not get back to him._ _So he sets aside his quill and ink and moves onto the physics paper he had been working on. _

Looking back on it, Delbert cannot believe how stupid he was not to visit her after the funeral. He honestly hadn't meant to disregard her like he had, and he thanks the stars that he's been given a second chance with her.

Standing up from his chair, he stretches until his shoulders pop and he extinguishes the lights in his den. The alcohol seems to have done it's job by the time he gets up the stairs and he crashes into his bed after setting the alarm clock for an ungodly hour in the morning.

Sleep comes quickly for what may be the first time in his life.


	7. Chapter 7

**AN: I didn't mean to put this chapter off as long as I did, nor did I expect it to still be going after eight chapters. I would like to thank you all from the bottom of my heart for all the kind words you have left for me, they really do encourage me to write more. They are the wind beneath my wings, so to speak. I don't reply to reviews, I probably should to let you all know personally how grateful I am for the time that you take out of your day to stroke my ego. But even so, thank you. I do write for myself, but there is a special place in my heart for you guys. **

**There now, with all that sappy stuff out of the way, I give you the next installment of "The Gardener". **

Amelia rolls over early that morning, the final tendrils of a tumultuous night of sleep slipping from her mind. That night had been apparently very busy for the lads down at the docks, there was no end to the blaring noise and flashing lights. Paired with an unusually uncomfortable mattress, and a sense of the jitters that hadn't been around since her days as a cadet, Amelia felt almost miserable at the lack of sleep she found herself with. It wasn't until the wee hours of the morning that Amelia had managed to slip away for a few hours, for all the good it did her.

Rubbing her neck, Amelia sits up slowly, the indigo colored sheets rustling around her. Pools of previously undisturbed satin rustle in her large bed as she swings her legs over the edge. These sheets would be one of the things Amelia would sorely miss when she left the spaceport. She had found them billowing in an open air shop near the trade district, and the buy had been one of complete impulse. Not an impulse buy that she felt bad about, the sheets were put to use immediately on her otherwise bland, lumpy bed.

Morning begins with a scalding shower that fogs the mirror before she sets foot into the tiny shower cubicle. Navigating through the thick steam, she steps into the spray. Thick pulsing jets slowly recede to mere trickles of water after only a few minutes and she growls, lathering herself quickly. The pipes here were terrible, and she knew it was from a lack of ground water supply that led to low pressure and water shortages, but this was the hub of business for the entire quadrant. It was a bad practice, and as Amelia stepped out of the shower, she is suddenly all too glad to be leaving this all behind.

Water soaked toiletries are dried quickly with her towel before being chucked into a large bin on the counter. She reflects on the oddity of her morning as she dresses at a leisurely pace in her bedroom. Her demure surroundings would be replaced today by lavish carpets, vaulted ceilings, and a longer walk to the coffee pot than she was comfortable with. But the larger space also meant more occupants, and so much more to deal with than the neighbor with domestic violence charges.

As if on cue, the lieutenant on the other side of the wall thumps in anger and Amelia decides that she has had enough of this. Fighting with a spouse was one thing that she would be quick to stay out of, but interrupting her morning with petty pounding would land him on the wrong end of her boot.

Course of action set, she shoves her feet into her customary boots and buttons her blouse swiftly as she hops the fence on his deck. Trying the handle, she is rewarded with a smooth turn and she steps into the tiny dwelling, her face turning ashen at the smell. Dishes are piled in a small sink and the counter seems to be creaking under the weight of the grime alone.

"Danner!" Amelia's tone is a sharp staccato against the filth ridden walls and she is rewarded with the stomping sound that she had become sadly accustomed to.

"Stay out of this, Smollet." It's a drunken snarl before ten in the morning and she crosses the room quickly towards the man. Stubble on his face indicates that he had indeed gone more than a day without shaving, most likely off duty for now. A proper officer wouldn't dare being seen in the state he's in, and she feels remotely ashamed for the man.

"Listen to me very carefully." Lowering her voice so only he can hear her, she grabs at his face with clean, sharp claws. "If I ever hear you raising that kind of racket this early in the morning again, I will be very quick to report you to the constabulary regarding your behavior against your spouse." It wouldn't do to let him know that she was moving today, lest he think that more of this behavior was acceptable.

"This isn't any of your damn business!"

Baring her teeth, she steers the man towards the wall, her eyes blazing in anger. "You will respect me as your superior, or I swear to it, there will be consequences." Shoving the man roughly into the wall again, she strides out of the dwelling quickly, slamming the door behind her.

Amelia is quick to wash her hands before touching anything other than her door knob and she continues about her morning, free from the savage pounding from the other townhouse.

Just as the bristles on her toothbrush work their way past her front teeth, she hears the door chime and she swears, making quick work of the rest of her mouth.

"Come in, Doctor," Amelia yells from around a mouthful of toothpaste and quickly rinses her mouth out.

The sound of the door opening is accompanied by a shuffle of footsteps in the main area. "Ah- Amelia!"

Remembering the boxes by the door, Amelia reacts quickly and pounces into the main room, snatching a brown cardboard drink carrier from his hand as the Doctor topples headlong over the packing crates. The mat by the door has somehow made it's way on top of the Doctor's head and Amelia flicks the fabric off his head with a sly smile.

"Really Doctor, you should be more careful." Amelia plucks a nondescript cup out of it's cardboard nest, casually sniffing it's contents. Purring in satisfaction, Amelia sets the cup down, smoothing out her cream colored blouse "Fantastic idea, by the way."

Delbert gets to his feet, brushing himself off and adjusting his glasses. "Who puts boxes next to the frond- fond- front door?" Delbert blames his recent slip of the tongue on still being tired and he purses his lips, determined not to make a fool of himself anymore.

"Perhaps, someone moving would put the boxes next to the front door to expedite the process." Her eyebrow arches in his direction before she sashays to her bedroom, leaving the coffee cup on her empty counter.

"Perhaps someone expecting guests should move the boxes!" Doppler, thinking he has gotten the last word, leans back against the counter, plucking a coffee cup out of the cardboard container he had very nearly dropped.

"You could learn a thing or two about moving things to accommodate guests, Delbert Doppler." Her tone is unusually harsh as it echos off the walls in the small flat and Amelia can practically hear his ears flatten themselves against his head. Amelia didn't have to be next to him to know that she had struck a nerve.

"I know the mansion is a mess, and I know it's my fault." He is the picture of humility, slumped against her counter with his eyes to the floor, and Amelia suddenly feels all the anger melt into horrific guilt. How could she even blame him? He obviously didn't know it was even there, and she feels sick for getting onto him about it.

"No, we aren't talking about the mansion." Amelia drops her garment bags on top of the boxes by the door and stands in front of Delbert, her hands on her hips. How best to tell the man that she had found something of his late wife's? "I mean- yes we are talking about the mansion. We are talking about your late wife's things hanging about in unused rooms." Her thoughts stray back to the white coat she had found a few nights ago, and the haunted feeling she couldn't shake that night.

"Wha-?" The accusation seems to catch Delbert off guard and he can't speak around the sudden knot in his throat. "You found something of hers?" He looks up from the floor, his brown eyes shining with an emotion that Amelia desperately hopes isn't there. The question comes out hollow, and Amelia almost doesn't want to answer him.

Amelia nods. "Her coat was hanging in the wardrobe. You aren't over her yet, are you?" Her voice is quieter now, tinged with doubt over having even brought the subject up.

"I- It's difficult to explain." Delbert's eyes go back to the floor, and it's clear he doesn't want to talk about this.

"Try, Doctor. You will find I can be very understanding." She leads him to the couch and sits him down gently. Harsh words and force, much her favorite as they are, would not do for this occasion.

"Abagail was my best friend. When we married, we married for companionship." Delbert admits quietly. The Doctor is clearly unsure of himself but he continues nonetheless, his hands a tangled mess in his lap. Amelia can't get over how vulnerable he looks at this moment. It's the second time in the months that she has known him that she has seen such behavior of the normally sure Doctor. The first had been under entirely different, and understandable circumstances, and she couldn't fault him at all for feeling the way he did. The situation had changed him into a capable, even if a bit cocky helmsman and first mate. Now, she only saw the still maybe grieving widower on her couch, and she didn't quite know what to do.

"The love I felt for her was genuine, but it wasn't what I feel when I'm around you." Delbert gets brave and his eyes travel up her face and into hers. "I will love her until I die, but it will never be the kind of love I have for you." Amelia sighs in relief inwardly before her analytical side steps in to take control of the situation.

Amelia's eyebrow arches at the sudden use of the word love, but it isn't something that hasn't crossed her mind too. She has known for some time that the way she feels about the Doctor can only lead to something permanent.

"Love?" It's only after that she is able to clear the knot from her throat that the quiet question comes out.

Delbert nods, his words earnest. "I wasn't even sure of it until I said it. It just feels right. I can't explain it any other way. Maybe you moving in is our way of coping with having to move on with our lives."

Amelia can't recall another point in her life where there has ever been a more honest one sided conversation. But it makes sense enough, and they are both adults. Even so, she can't think of a single thing to say in light of his admission, and that very truth alone shocks her.

"Doctor I think this may be the first time anyone has ever rendered me speechless." Amelia chuckles at the situation. Three months ago, she expected so much less of the Doctor upon their first meeting. Learning now that she had sorely underestimated him, she sees him in a different light. What was previously a bumbling, bookish doctor was now a clever, quick witted man.

The movers are quick to destroy the private moment, and the start of a very lengthy day begins with a ringing bell

Boxes are loaded one by one into a waiting cart outside and Amelia watches on with mixed feelings. It's only after all her things are loaded in what seems like minutes later does she realize how little she had owned to begin with. Most of the boxes had been taken away the previous night to be shipped off to Arrow's family. For years, she had lived around the large man, and now that she was on her own, her own life felt very empty. But here she was, ready to move in with another man, and although the relationship was still in question, Amelia feels that this is what she is supposed to be doing.

Amelia doesn't believe in a higher power, or any other sort of nonsense, but how else is she to explain the sense of completeness she feels around the bumbling doctor? This wasn't a feeling she had when they had first met, and she certainly didn't trust herself while under the influence on the planet. It was only after she had gained distance from the very root of her affections was she able to sort out the jumbled mess he had made her into.

The very truth of the matter was that she could no longer function without him. Routines were followed down to every little minute detail, but without the Doctor's kind words and gentle touch, everything felt strangely wrong. It aggravated Amelia to no end that she now found herself in a dependent relationship, but there was no other place she would rather be.

The room that she would call her own resides in the eastern wing of the mansion, and it's totally different from the tiny room off the stairs. The room had been recently repainted in an airy cerulean with tan accents, and the rug beneath had been stripped away to reveal smooth wood flooring.

"The whole mansion is done in dramatic reds and gold, I thought that a few rooms in a different motif would make the place more inviting." It was Sarah who had organized the repainting and redecorating in the rooms, and Amelia found herself immediately grateful.

"How very thoughtful. This room will do quite nicely, thank you." Amelia strides around the room in full, sure steps, taking everything in. A swaying chandelier in the center of the room will provide enough light in the evening, but this room was built for the sunlight. Long linen curtains hang in front of large bay windows and a balcony door that is quickly unlatched.

The view that is offered her is nothing short of amazing. It's clear here the effort the planetary council has gone to to terraform the planet. Small lawns are already appearing adjacent to large, sprawling oak trees. It's nothing like a fully fledged garden world, but it's a start on the dusty rock she is now to call home.

Turning back to the door she finds it occupied by none other than the estates owner himself. "I thought you might enjoy the view." Free from carpet or runners, Delbert's stride is unhampered by anything that might bring out his inner klutz.

"It is quite marvelous." They are quiet for a long moment and Amelia turns to the Doctor as an errant breeze finds it's way into the room. "I don't suppose I ever got around to thanking you."

Delbert smiles, the pad of his thumb smoothing her hair down. "I'm happy to have you here."

Amelia smiles in return. It's nothing like the intimidating show of authority he had been treated to upon their first meeting, but rather a softer, kinder smile. The corners of her lips turn up and her usually fiery green eyes soften ever so slightly. "For everything, Doctor. Thank you."

Delbert, not knowing quite what to say and certainly not wanting to lose the moment, feels himself drawn closer to her. It's not the first time he's kissed her, and God if he can help it, certainly not the last. Delbert is drunk on her very presence here, with him, and he feels his imagination running wild within his mind. For all the things he has thought about doing with her, to her, he settles on waiting for her to initiate the contact.

It is the first time she has ever felt anything like this. Past courtships don't hold a candle to the inferno that is blazing in her chest, and Amelia doesn't have a clue how to handle any of it. It's as if all at the same time, her heart is soaring while her stomach drops. Discombobulating is exactly the word for it, and Amelia feels exactly that.

But as they near each other, their eyes slipping closed in anticipation of that final, gentle touch, an awkward cough at the door sends her across the room, her body automatically turning away from the door to hide the blush that is spreading on her face.

"Are we interrupting anything?" Two burly movers stand in the doorway laden with boxes and Amelia indicates with an open palm that they are free to enter. She is annoyed that not for the second time that day, a private moment had been ruined by the same two people, and there is plenty she can say for missed opportunities. It's precisely why she is standing here, and not on her ship facilitating repairs and signing a new charter.

They are out of the room as quickly as they came, but the moment is gone and Delbert is once again afraid to go near her.

"I'll ah, just leave you to get settled." And just like that, he's gone again, most likely down to his observatory, but Amelia can't be bothered to chase the man down now. There's plenty to be done up here before she can consider it liveable, and she is quick to busy herself with it.


	8. Chapter 8

_Delbert can't remember another time in his working life that he has had to be awake this long. Hours had stretched into days hunched over engineering plans , and he could feel his patience beginning to go. _

_Looking across the table for a brief moment, he catches a brief smile on her lips as she sketches and scrawls out plans for a planter. _

"_If we use a smaller power source, we can make it self automated with a feedback loop in the code." She's talking more to herself than to him as she wets the nub of her pen in an ink well. _

"_Would solar panels work?" _

_Abagail shakes her head, her blonde curls following sluggishly in the low light. "I've already thought of that. The panels would weigh too much." _

_Delbert sighs, removing his glasses from their perch on his nose. "I think we've been at this too long." _

_Chewing on her lip briefly, she nods. "A walk, then?" _

_Arm in arm, the pair walks in the glowing light of the moon on dusty roads and rocky hills. Montressor had been a mining planet, but after mining the coal out, the life seemed to leave the landscape. _

"_It's a shame, I remember when we were kids how this place was lit up at night." Abagail's eyes sweep over a once rich landscape, her face down turned. _

_Delbert smiles, remembering the bio-luminescent plant life that used to be common to Montressor. Beautiful enough in the day, the plants seemed to gain new life at night in the low light of the industrialized moon. The gardens had been a wash of purple, spinning flowers and teal colored grass swaying in a light breeze. It had been glorious in his youth, and with the industrialization of the planet, many of the wonderful things from his childhood slowly began to disappear. _

_But that doesn't have to be the end. The gears in Delbert's mind begin to turn at the possibilities. _

"_A greenhouse," he mutters, rubbing the stubble on his chin. "We could cultivate everything, then when the planet is ready, just let everything go."_

_Delbert stops, looking at Abagail's confused expression. _

"_We'll build a greenhouse attached to the house, it could grow everything right there. I don't know why I didn't think of it earlier." _

_Abagail's eyes light up, understanding flecking her blue orbs. "It would totally eliminate the need for a planter!" _

_It's the first significant breakthrough they have made in weeks, and after the threat of the project getting shut down, the pair had been doubting an answer was out there. Delbert smiles as Abagail's arms wind around him in excitement, and he goes back to the moment they had met in the tall grass of his childhood home. _

_It's only then, as he is clinging to her, that he realizes that this is what he has been living for. Abagail's happiness had always been important to him, but he could kick himself now for how obtuse he had been concerning the whole thing. _

_Her happiness had always been his first concern, from the jello that they had shared at lunch time, to the prom that he went to because her date stood her up. His whole world had revolved around her since they were children, and the sudden moment of clarity shakes his world. _

"_Del?" Her hand shakes his arm, bringing him out of his thoughts, and he blinks a few times to clear his head. _

_The moment is gone, and he smiles, his hand encircling her waist. "Nothing, Abby." _

He hasn't been to this spot in almost a year, and it shows. Tall weeds have nearly grown over the marble headstone, and he isn't even sure that he has the right spot until he uncovers the gilded writing. Abagail's name is written in golden, flowing letters and the inset picture calls back countless memories from their brief happiness.

"I know I haven't been by in a while, Abby." A nearby red maple looks ready to shed it's leaves again and it shudders in a brief wind.

Hugging his coat closer, he hunkers down in front of her headstone. "You'll never believe what Jim got me into."

"I went into space! Oh, it was amazing, Abby. We went on a treasure hunt, I even wore a ridiculous space suit and everything!" Delbert might be imagining it, but he can swear he hears her laughter riding on the quiet tones of the wind.

"And there was this woman..." He trails off, saddened by the sudden turn of the one way conversation. The ground is cold against his clenched fingers, and he grits his teeth against the chill.

Abagail wouldn't want him to mourn her forever, he needs to move on. "I'm in love, Abby." It feels like betrayal, and he feels his heart sink into his stomach.

"God, I miss you every day, and that's not getting any easier." The wind is biting into his face and he can't feel his legs from the position he is in, but he needs to get this out. "It seems like every day I find more things that remind me of you." The inset picture on the gravestone shows intelligent blue eyes set in a sun kissed countenance and framed in light, and the longer he looks, the worse he feels about the whole thing.

"I will always love you," Delbert shuts his eyes against the burn of the tears and the suddenly sharp light, willing himself to continue. "that will never change. I'm just making room in my heart for her."

Delbert doesn't stay long after he's said his piece, and after his hand grazes the glassy top of her tombstone, he leaves at a brisk pace, determined that this will be the last of it.

Amelia looks down at the planter on the table in front of her. Promising seeds were thrust deep into nutrient rich soil with the promise of plenty of water and sunshine through the clear glass panes of a new greenhouse. It's a completely different, and entirely wonderful new situation she has found herself in.

For Amelia, it is the start of a whole new life, with someone she dearly hopes will be the very last awkward morning after.

Standing clad in a pair of khakis and an olive colored button up, Amelia contemplates her next actions. The vines had been trimmed back, and the flowers had all been replanted. All that was left to do was water, and she was sure she could pawn that off on someone else.

Looking around, she can't help but congratulate herself a little. The troughs of recently touched dirt and tiny piles of mulched wood didn't look like much, but in a few weeks the whole place would be a mess of multi colored blooms and greenery every which way.

Stretching her sore back sends a momentary twinge down her side and her nose wrinkles at the sensation, perhaps a hot bath was in order. Now that she thinks about it, she must be filthy. She had been out here most of the afternoon, sweeping and potting and digging. Her fingernails had been protected by the gardening gloves she thought to wear, but her forearms hadn't escaped the nearly black dirt that had been flung around from her efforts.

"Ah, I thought you might be out here." Delbert, laden down with a clay pot of his own, leans against the door jamb.

Amelia hums, stripping the garden gloves from her hands before she has a chance to think better of it. "I thought I would get everything sorted out here. It seemed time enough." Angry red scars run the length of her knuckles and down the backs of her hands, and Delbert can't pretend that he didn't see it.

"I used to fight in school." A sheepish grin colors her usually stoic features and Delbert's eyebrow quirks.

"Often?"

Amelia nods, wiping her arms down with a towel. "Children can be cruel." She doesn't elaborate, and for the experience that Delbert has with particularly cruel children, she doesn't need to.

"Well, ah I have something for you." He sets the clay pot down on the table and in an instant, green vines explode from the container, sprawling over the otherwise barren tables.

"My word, Doctor." Amelia watches in fascination as various shades of orange explode from the vines and slowly curl into languorous, lazy spirals. Amelia instantly recognizes the vibrant coral colored flowers from the planet, and she stares open mouthed at the Doctor.

"I had a geneticist build the DNA profile from some stray pollen on my jacket." Delbert answers her wordless wonder with a wave of his hand with a small smile.

"That must have costed a fortune, Doctor." Amelia finally finds her voice, her hand flush against her chest in shock.

Delbert drinks in the moment silently as Amelia's green eyes go wide with curiosity. Silhouetted against a setting sun, her soft red locks are nearly aflame in the bright light. It's a sight he's rarely gotten to see; her wide eyed wonder.

This moment is beautiful.

Delbert chuckles, adjusting his glasses on his nose. "Not really. You'd be surprised at how far a decent bottle of scotch can go."

Amelia's head turns to face him, a serene smile playing on her ruby red lips. "How did I get so lucky?"

Delbert's arms wrap around her middle, his heart swelling with love. "I think I'm the lucky one." His cheek presses against hers as his lips press a gentle kiss against her ear.

"Now, I'm going to go have a shower. I trust when I get back, these will be watered?" Amelia kisses his lips briefly before sauntering out of the room, dropping her gloves in a pail on the way inside.

Delbert locates the hose quickly and turns the knob on the spigot. Watering takes zero concentration, and Delbert soon finds his eyes wandering over the expanse of potted plants soon to spring up. Some of the more aggressive plants had already shot through the mulch and dirt, their light green stalks proud against a setting sun.

As he is halfway through the main table, a strange golden glow catches his eye. There, emblazoned on a gold plaque read the words '_In memory of Abagail Doppler' _and Delbert can't breathe. It's unobtrusive enough, and he probably wouldn't have noticed it after the plants had started spilling over the tables, but it's a surprise nevertheless.

_Oh_, this woman.

The rest of the watering is done in somewhat of a stupor and he quickly shuts off the hose and heads inside to his study.

Evening crests on the large mansion and it finds two of it's occupants in the large observatory attached to the western wing. Delbert had given up on work a few hours ago and he had put on some music and sat in the low light alone for much of the night. Today had been a game changer, and as he swirls the brandy around in his crystal tumbler, he is no longer sure of the future.

"Something on your mind, Doctor?" Amelia's low voice calls out from the doorway and Delbert looks up, his ears perking in the light of the fire.

"One might say that." The door shuts with a resounding crack against expanding wood and Amelia ventures into the cavernous workspace. Tables and chairs were littered with papers and books and all manner of detritus piled in incoherent jumbles in all the empty spaces. It was an entropic calm, and Amelia wondered how much of a quake it would take for all the carefully tended piles to spindle into chaos.

"What are we doing?" The look of vulnerability on her face is one that he hasn't seen in a while, and it takes him by surprise as he walks toward her, leaving his brandy on the desk.

"Amelia, I meant what I said. I love you." His hand takes hers, and his eyes find her own emerald orbs swimming in a sea of doubt.

"Oh, Doctor. What have you done to me?" Amelia makes a move to pull away, to swipe at the small tears that are now spilling over her cheeks, and the Doctor stops her with a tug. Slowly, the pad of his thumb erases her doubt and she feels her heart soaring in her chest. "I don't want to be alone anymore, Delbert." Amelia's hand finds his lapel, and as her hand trails up to his shoulder, she finds herself drawn into warm, brown eyes and a kind smile.

"I don't think I could let you try again." It's a quick quip against her lips and he quickly captures them, their tongues meeting in a hot wet slide. As Amelia's arms fling around his neck, Delbert draws the lithe female into his arms further, his being aching to be closer to her.

Seconds melt into insignificance as the moment stretches on into eternity, and it's only after the need for air becomes acknowledged that they break apart.

"My my, Doctor you are just full of surprises, aren't you?" Delbert can feel the heat from her flushed face against his neck and he can barely contain himself in what used to be a place of work.

If the kiss wasn't enough, the sarcastic smirk that he had certainly learned from her would do the trick. "Stick around, who knows. This streak of mine just might hold out."

**AN: Well, this is it for this one! I hope you all have enjoyed reading this as much as I have enjoyed writing it. I for one will be happy to finally mark this one as complete. As always, the rest of this series can be reached from my authors page and reviews are always encouraged. **

**I am also happy to announce that I have made the decision to start writing my own book. That being said, I will be trying to cull down my workload considerably, so as to make time for this new venture of mine. I'm not abandoning you guys, I do have another few stories planned, and one action packed one is coming up! That doesn't mean that the fluff will be any less though. ****For now though, I think I'm going to sit back and enjoy not feeling like a failure for a few nights before I begin hacking away at my huge workload again. **

**A huge thank you to you all who have encouraged me, and have been there for me since I started writing this. Welsh Gem in particular, thank you SO SO very much for your regular reviews and boosts to my ego. I really don't have words for how much I appreciate you, dear. **

**As for the rest of you, (just kidding guys) I'll see you next time****. Expect the first chapter of my new story (which is still untitled, much to my annoyance) to be up relatively soon, and I will be updating my profile very soon so as to keep track of everything. **


End file.
